The National Diabetes Education Program’s (NDEP) refreshed “Practice Transformation for Physicians and Health Care Teams” (formerly known as “Better Diabetes Care”) is designed for health care professionals and administrators who want to change systems of health care delivery around diabetes.

Practice change is essential to provide evidence-based care recommended by the Patient-Centered Medical Home (PCMH) model and to manage issues related to diabetes and its complications. This free online resource provides models, links, and tools to help physicians and health care teams initiate and maintain quality improvements in their health care practice. Content featured on this site is based on current, peer-reviewed literature and evidence-based clinical practice recommendations.

“Practice Transformation for Physicians and Health Care Teams” is organized by the following key sections:

• Engage Leadership & Assess Your Practice
• Provide Evidence-Based Care
• Use Information Systems
• Improve Practice Quality
• Use Clinical Decision Support
• Practice Team-Based Care
• Enhance Patient-Centered Interactions
• Improve Patient Care Coordination

Visit www.YourDiabetesInfo.org/PracticeTransformation to learn more, and for promotional tools you can use to promote the resource with your partners and colleagues.

Background

The Alabama Department of Public Health’s (ADPH) Diabetes Program collaborates with partners within and outside of the Department to help people delay or prevent type 2 diabetes and to reduce complications related to the disease. The program promotes a variety of topics, including nutrition, physical activity, weight loss, smoking cessation, recommended influenza and pneumococcal vaccines, foot exams, and eye exams. The ADPH Diabetes Program regularly uses resources from the National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP) to reach its target audiences with information about these important diabetes topics.

Outreach and Promotions

In support of American Diabetes Association Alert Day® in March, the ADPH Diabetes Program used NDEP resources to raise awareness of family health history as a risk factor for type 2 diabetes. NDEP materials were used to support the ADPH Diabetes Program’s objective to make department employees aware of their risk for type 2 diabetes, and to encourage employees at risk to talk with their doctor about steps they can take to delay or prevent the disease. NDEP messages and materials were also used in their outreach to families in Alabama.

To kick off the promotion with employees, the ADPH Diabetes Program used NDEP messaging in an email broadcast to nearly 3,800 employees statewide. The email included links to NDEP resources such as the Diabetes Risk Test, NDEP’s 4 Questions You Should Ask Your Family About Diabetes & Family Health History, and NDEP’s Family Health History Quiz. As a result, many employees contacted the ADPH Diabetes Program for more diabetes information, including one employee who requested additional NDEP diabetes prevention publications to share with family members at an upcoming family gathering.

The ADPH Diabetes Program also conducted media outreach as part of its Diabetes Alert Day efforts. Mr. Lamont Pack, Director of the Diabetes Prevention and Control Unit, participated in a television interview with WAKA TV – CBS 8 Morning News about Diabetes Alert Day where he shared important diabetes risk messages and encouraged viewers to take the Diabetes Risk Test. Mr. Pack also provided NDEP’s phone number and website (www.YourDiabetesInfo.org). The interview reached approximately 12,240 households in Alabama.

Visit www.YourDiabetesInfo.org/FamilyHistory for free diabetes prevention information and resources from the NDEP. To learn more about the ADPH Diabetes Program’s activities, visit http://www.adph.org/diabetes/Default.asp?id=861 or contact Mr. Pack at Lamont.Pack@adph.state.al.us.

Background

The National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition (HMHB) is a recognized leader and resource in maternal and child health, reaching an estimated 10 million health care professionals, parents, and policymakers through its membership of over 100 local, state, and national organizations. Enhanced by a network of Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies state and local coalitions, HMHB creates partnerships among community groups, nonprofits, professional associations, businesses, and government agencies. HMHB’s mission is to improve the health and safety of mothers, babies, and families through educational materials and collaborative partnerships.

Outreach and Promotions

A long time partner of the National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP), HMHB regularly uses NDEP’s messages and materials to reach its audiences with diabetes information. For example, in observance of Mother’s Day and National Women’s Health Week 2012, HMHB joined NDEP to raise awareness of the lasting impact of gestational diabetes on women and their children and steps they can take to lower their risk for developing type 2 diabetes in the future. To kick off the promotion, HMHB featured NDEP’s history of gestational diabetes (hGDM) messages and a link to the hGDM section of NDEP’s website in its “Monday Morning Memo” e-newsletter, which is distributed to more than 3,000 readers. HMHB also used NDEP’s hGDM messages to create social media messages for Facebook and Twitter, raising awareness with its fans and followers throughout the month of May.

HMHB has also promoted NDEP’s hGDM messages by hosting a webinar entitled, “It's Never Too Early...To Prevent Diabetes: The Lasting Impact of Gestational Diabetes on Mothers and Children.” The webinar focused on the lifelong health risks for women with hGDM, risks to the child of the pregnancy complicated by gestational diabetes, and steps mothers can take to help lower these risks for both themselves and their children. Joanne Gallivan, M.S., R.D., Director of the NDEP at the National Institutes of Health, also presented NDEP resources for supporting women with hGDM, such as www.YourDiabetesInfo.org/GDM, Small Steps. Big Rewards. Your GAME PLAN to Prevent Type 2 Diabetes, and promotional tools that people could use to raise awareness in their communities.

“We value the work that NDEP does to provide free, evidence-based resources that we can use to reach our broader audiences with information about diabetes,” said Janice Frey-Angel, CEO of the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition. “We look forward to continuing our partnership with NDEP on this important effort in the years to come.”

Visit www.YourDiabetesInfo.org/GDM for more information about hGDM and for free resources from NDEP, such as NDEP’s newly revised tip sheet, Did You Have Gestational Diabetes When You Were Pregnant? What You Need to Know. To learn more about the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition’s activities, contact Jennifer Sharp at jsharp@hmhb.org.

Help NDEP spread the word! Visit www.YourDiabetesInfo.org/GDM for the following:

• NDEP’s newly revised tip sheet, Did You Have Gestational Diabetes When You Were Pregnant? What You Need to Know., has tips to help women with a history of gestational diabetes and their families lower their risk for type 2 diabetes.
• NDEP’s promotional toolkit for partners includes resources – web banners, volunteer profiles of women affected by gestational diabetes, a feature article, and more – that you can use to raise awareness in your community.
• Engage with NDEP using social media. “Like” the NDEP Facebook page and invite your Facebook friends to “Like” the page, too! You can also upload one of NDEP’s hGDM cover photos to your organization’s Facebook page. Follow NDEP on Twitter and re-tweet messages related to the lasting impact of gestational diabetes. Follow the diabetes conversation by using the hash tag gestational #diabetes.

Background

The Minnesota Diabetes & Heart Health Collaborative Initiatives (MN-DC) was convened in 2000 with a mission to promote diabetes messages and spread best practices for diabetes care statewide. The MN-DC is chaired jointly by the Minnesota Department of Health and Stratis Health – a Medicare Quality Improvement Organization – and includes 18 nonprofit members representing health plans, advocacy, and quality improvement and public health organizations.

Outreach and Promotions

The MN-DC provides a variety of diabetes educational tools to meet needs of adults with diabetes and underserved populations in Minnesota. Using information from NDEP’s 4 Steps to Control Your Diabetes. For Life., Know Your Diabetes ABCs, and Diabetes HealthSense, the MN-DC developed a low literacy patient education toolset used by health educators, community health workers, local public health practitioners, and others. A key element of the toolset is a set of health literacy instructional sheets – designed for use with non-English-speaking people, recent immigrants, the deaf and hard of hearing, the elderly, and others struggling to manage their diabetes due to low health literacy – which uses pictures and a low literacy script for educators with tips for managing diabetes and making healthy behavior changes. The 24 instructional sheets explain various diabetes self-care topics and behavior change tips. Each has a goal setting worksheet to help patients record their readiness for making a change for better health, their goals, questions for their health care team, and their plans for taking the first step.

Additionally, the MN-DC used NDEP’s Take Care of Your Heart. Manage Your Diabetes and Know Your Diabetes ABCs resources to develop patient education handouts and fact sheets for health care professionals, all using simple messaging, resource links, and colorful graphics to help people “Make the Link” between diabetes and heart disease. To promote the “Make the Link” messaging, the MN-DC also developed and published print advertisements and news releases for local media outlets.

The MN-DC also implemented a “Is Diabetes or Heart Disease in Your Family Tree?” campaign to raise awareness about family health history as a risk factor for type 2 diabetes and diabetes-related health problems like heart disease. Campaign materials – based on content from the “Am I at Risk?” section of the NDEP website – include: family history fact sheets, news releases, radio PSAs in five languages, print advertisements, patient handouts, and even a hand-held fan with simple steps to help people reduce their risk for type 2 diabetes.

Lessons Learned

Through these activities, the MN-DC learned many lessons that can be applied to other NDEP partners’ outreach and promotions efforts:

• Content expertise is not needed by group if using information and resources from NDEP.
• To reach audiences at a low cost, leverage existing communication vehicles through partnerships.
• People prefer simple, plain language materials with photos (especially photos that are culturally appropriate).
• People with diabetes and/or heart disease are effective advocates of prevention messages with their families and communities.

For more information about the Minnesota Diabetes and Heart Health Collaborative’s activities, contact Laurel Reger, MBA, at laurel.reger@state.mn.us.

Background

The Kentucky Department for Public Health’s Diabetes Prevention and Control Program (KDPCP) is a public health initiative consisting of a network of state, regional and local health professionals whose mission is to reduce new cases of diabetes as well as the sickness, disability and death associated with diabetes and its complications.

Outreach and Promotions

In observance of American Diabetes Association® Diabetes Alert Day 2012, the KDPCP used NDEP’s Diabetes Alert Day campaign resources to raise awareness of diabetes, diabetes risk factors, and behavior change messages to its network of more than 600 partners, including employers, health plans, health care professionals, hospitals and health centers, faith communities, professional associations, universities, and state and local diabetes coalitions. As a result of the KDPCP’s Diabetes Alert Day outreach and partner collaborations, many partners also promoted Diabetes Alert Day to their own networks – reaching an even larger audience.

To kick off Diabetes Alert Day outreach efforts, the KDPCP promoted NDEP’s Diabetes Alert Day resources by distributing the March issue of NDEP’s News & Notes, encouraging readers to add NDEP’s Diabetes Alert Day e-signatures to their email, use NDEP’s prewritten Facebook and Twitter messages, and post NDEP’s Diabetes Alert Day web buttons to their websites. Many of the KDPCP’s partners reported using these easy, budget-friendly ways to raise awareness of diabetes risk factors and resources – such as NDEP’s Just One Step tool – to help people make lifestyle changes to prevent type 2 diabetes.

The KDPCP and its partners also distributed NDEP’s Diabetes Alert Day press release through a variety of outlets across Kentucky. For example, the KDPCP submitted the press release to state media outlets including 149 newspapers, 126 radio stations, and 29 television stations. Additionally, the KDPCP encouraged partners to adapt and localize the release for their own communities. Partners reported that they submitted the release to their local newspapers, published it in their member/employee/consumer newsletters, shared it on their organizations’ websites, and distributed it to clients including pharmacies, senior centers, and hospitals.

Other promotions included sharing NDEP’s Diabetes Alert Day messages through presentations, bulletin and electronic marquee boards, screening events, and church bulletin inserts. The KDPCP also distributed Diabetes Alert Day messages in a payroll stuffer distributed to 35,000 state employees (see example to the left).

Evaluation

To evaluate Diabetes Alert Day outreach efforts, the KDPCP used a web-based reporting system to collect and monitor information about activities and potential exposure to Diabetes Alert Day messages. In March 2012, there were 174 total activities implemented, reaching an audience of more than 1,314,255 people.

For more information about the Kentucky Department for Public Health’s Diabetes Prevention and Control Program, visit http://chfs.ky.gov/dph/info/dpqi/cd/diabetes.htm or contact Reita Jones at Reita.Jones@ky.gov. Also be sure to visit www.YourDiabetesInfo.org/AlertDay2013 for resources you can use to promote Diabetes Alert Day 2013 in your community.

In observance of Diabetes Alert Day, the National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP) is encouraging people to find out if they are at risk for type 2 diabetes by taking the Diabetes Risk Test and talking to their family about their family history of diabetes. If left undiagnosed or untreated, diabetes can lead to serious health problems including heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney disease, amputation, and even death.

Visit www.YourDiabetesInfo.org/AlertDay2013 for tools you can use to help people learn about their risk for type 2 diabetes, including the Diabetes Risk Test, Family Health History Quiz, and the 4 Questions You Should Ask Your Family about Diabetes and Family Health History tool.

You can also find promotional tools you can use to promote Diabetes Alert Day in your community, including a template press release, feature articles, web buttons, email signatures, social media messages, and more.

Visit www.yourdiabetesinfo.org/heart for resources to help you raise awareness about the ABCs of diabetes and the link between diabetes and your heart, including a new infographic that explains why it’s important to take care of your heart if you have diabetes, and steps you can take to lower your risk for heart problems.

Background

Migrant Health Promotion (MHP) builds on community strengths to improve health in farmworker and border communities. MHP’s programs provide peer health education, increase access to health resources, and bring community members together with health providers, employers, and policymakers to create positive health changes. MHP's great work demonstrates how community leaders, called Promotores and Promotoras, can provide inspiration, direction, and vision necessary to build stronger, healthier communities.

Outreach and Promotions

With support from the Texas Department of State Health Services' Diabetes Program and resources from the NDEP, Migrant Health Promotion implemented a “Promotora Community Program” (PCP) in Hidalgo County, Florida. The goal of the PCP is to promote healthy lifestyle changes by educating community members about their risk for type 2 diabetes and ways to prevent or manage the disease through healthy eating and physical activity.

As part of the PCP, Migrant Health Promotion used NDEP tools to coordinate activities that are culturally and linguistically appropriate to the population served by MHP. For example, the program organized cooking and nutrition classes using recipes from NDEP’s Más que comida, es vida. (It's more than food. It's Life.) bilingual (English and Spanish) recipe book, teaching people how to how make traditional Mexican food with healthier, diabetes-friendly ingredients. The program also used NDEP's bilingual The Road to Health Toolkit and Movimiento por su vida music CD to host diabetes health education sessions and exercise groups focused on encouraging people to make healthy behavior changes like eating more fruits and vegetables, reading food labels when grocery shopping, drinking water instead of sugary drinks, and tips for making physical activity a part of their daily lives.

As of August 2012, MHP conducted more than 100 sessions with a total of more than 1,500 program participants. Participants reported that their knowledge of diabetes and the importance of healthy eating and physical activity increased, noting that they have started making better food choices and being more active. One participant added, "If it wasn't for the PCP, I would have never made the time to exercise. Since I have joined the exercise group, I feel more motivated, more energetic, and agile."

For more information about Migrant Health Promotion and the Promotora Community Program, visit www.migranthealth.org or contact Colleen Reinert at creinert@migranthealth.org.

Background

Newton Medical Center (NMC) is a not-for-profit facility dedicated to providing health care services to residents of Harvey, Kansas and surrounding counties, regardless of race, color, sex, age, religion or ability to pay. In support of National Diabetes Month 2012, NMC partnered with community organizations and the NDEP to raise awareness of diabetes and the importance of making lifestyle changes to prevent type 2 diabetes or manage the disease to prevent complications.

Outreach and Promotions

Newton Medical Center and supporting partners sponsored several events during November to promote the theme, “Give Thanks! I Can Help Prevent Diabetes in Myself.”

To kick off the month, NMC hosted Dinner with the Doctor, a diabetes prevention panel discussion open to the general public that featured presentations by a family practice physician, obstetrician/gynecologist, and Certified Diabetes Educator (CDE). In addition to enjoying a diabetes-friendly dinner, attendees were able to ask questions about type 2 diabetes prevention and receive educational materials. During the event, NMC distributed NDEP’s Prevent Type 2 Diabetes. Step by Step., More than 50 Ways to Prevent Diabetes, and It’s Never Too Early to Prevent Diabetes tip sheets.

Newton Medical Center Primary Care Clinic employees led two “walkabouts” throughout the month to encourage regular exercise. Clinic employees invited the area’s Chambers of Commerce, as well as city leaders, community members, and the local elementary school to join the walks at a local park. A number of hospital employees also led walkabouts along hospital walking paths. Participants received the NDEP’s Small Steps. Big Rewards. Your GAME PLAN to Prevent Type 2 Diabetes booklet as a prize. Children also received NDEP’s Tips for Kids: How to Lower Your Risk for Type 2 Diabetes.

To follow up on this effort, NMC arranged to have CDEs give a presentation to the Chambers of Commerce titled, “Fifteen Minutes to Effective Carb Counting – Help Prevent the Onset of Diabetes” and distributed NDEP’s More than 50 Ways to Prevent Diabetes tip sheet.

Newton Medical Center also coordinated roundtable discussions with doctors and CDEs targeting patients at risk for type 2 diabetes. Doctors mailed their at-risk patients personal letters inviting them to join the roundtable discussions to talk about steps they can take to prevent type 2 diabetes or manage it to prevent complications. To guide the discussions, doctors used NDEP’s Prevent Type 2 Diabetes. Step by Step. tip sheet and The Road to Health Toolkit.

Additional activities during the month included healthy cooking classes hosted by dietitians, and collaborations with other health care facilities, ministries, and community organizations to distribute NDEP materials to at-risk audiences.

Newton Medical Center promoted National Diabetes Month events via the NMC website, electronic signs at the hospital and along the highway, posters in the hospital lobbies, and local media using resources from NDEP’s National Diabetes Month promotional toolkit.

For more information, contact Vallerie Gleason at val.gleason@newmedctr.org.